Kevin Wu

The Influence of Health Information Sources & Health Literacy on COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy

In Canada & in most places around the world, People use information to make medical decisions, the kind of information they use influences the kind of decision they make. In the time of COVID-19, we are dependent on people making choices that are in the public interest.

“This was a collaborative project with my classmates; Maryem Abbas and Rosa Chu.Health literacy is the ability to identify, read, process & understand basic health information in order to make decisions & take appropriate actions to manage health.Information seeking & an affinity towards particular sources of information is influenced by an individual’s health literacy. Health literacy, in turn, is influenced by an individual’s social determinants of health & personal perspectives on health.Information is sought to make informed decisions & take appropriate actions to manage an individual’s health. These decisions are influenced by the sources of information - whether they are mainstream or alternative sources of health information, & how closely they align with the perspectives & beliefs of the individuals reviewing this information. Within the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, one of the primary concerns is how & through which avenues health information is disseminated in order to gain the trust of the public in order to make the biggest impact in promoting healthy behaviours & protect against the continuous transmission of COVID-19. Additionally, what can be done to reduce the impact of the spread of false information & direct the public to more credible sources of information?”